NFL Football Player Appearances at the NFL Experience Courtyard Lobby Zone

We’re honored to be the official hotel sponsor of the NFL, and this week we’re sharing the bounty with all our fans by bringing a slew of NFL superstar players to the Courtyard Lobby Zone at the NFL Experience in Indiana. Come on through for NFL surprises and meet-and-greets* with the players!

Friday, 1/27/12 – Ben Ijalana, 6-7pm
Saturday, 1/28/12 – Adam Vinateri, 2-3pm; Gary  Brackett, 6-7pm
Sunday, 1/29/12 – Jerry Hughes, 2-3pm; Joseph Addai, 6-7pm
Monday, 1/30/12 – Anthony Castonzo, 5-6pm; Dallas Clark, 7-8pm
Tuesday, 1/31/12 – Pierre Garcon, 5-6pm; Joe Reitz, 7-8pm
Wednesday, 2/1/12 – DeMarco Murray, 5-6pm; Rich Eisen, 6:45-7:15pm; JJ Watt, 6-7pm
Thursday, 2/2/12 – Cam Newton, 5-6pm; Rich Eisen, 6:15-6:45pm; Mark Ingram, 7-8pm
Friday, 2/3/12 – DeAngelo Williams, 4-5pm; Rich Eisen, 6-6:30pm; Matthew Stafford, 5:15-6:45pm
Saturday, 2/4/12 – Jason Witten, 11:15-12:15pm; London Fletcher, 2-3pm; Dhani Jones, 3:30-5:30pm

*All schedules are subject to change.

Win a Signed NFL Football

Hut, hut, WIN! We’re giving away 5 autographed footballs everyday starting Monday, January 30, 2012, till the day before Super Bowl Sunday (February 4, 2012), from the following NFL superstars:

Dhani Jones, former linebacker for the Cincinnati Bengals – Monday, 1/30/12
Pierre Garcon, wide receiver for the Indianapolis Colts – Tuesday, 1/31/12
DeMarco Murray, running back for the Dallas Cowboys – Wednesday, 2/1/12
Mark Ingram, running back for the New Orleans Saints – Thursday, 2/2/12
Matthew Stafford, quarterback for the Detroit Lions – Friday, 2/3/12
Jason Witten, tight end for Dallas Cowboys – Saturday, 2/4/12

Simply follow @CourtyardHotels on Twitter and tweet @courtyardhotels the Twitter pal you’re watching the Super Bowl with (e.g. @USERNAME) and #HutHutWin for a chance to win.

Click here for Official Rules

America’s Most Sports-Crazed Cities

[Fenway Park: Flickr/Werner Kunz]

Grab your foam hand, jersey or favorite cap and get ready for some tailgating. Travel + Leisure asked their readers to help rank cities where playoffs, bowl games, and stadium are an important part of the local culture.

The following five cities are really serious about their sports. If you happen to be visiting one, be sure to stop by a sports bars, stadium, or other landmark for a taste of the local sports passion:

#1: Philadelphia, PA

Over the years, Philly sports fans have suffered much heartache, which only seemed to strengthen their commitment to their teams. Get taste of the city’s sport culture at Chickie’s and Pete’s sport bar for “crab fries.”

#2 Boston, MA

In the past 11 years, Boston sports teams have brought home 7 championship titles. Experience the Green Monster with a tour of the 100 year-old duck Fenway Park or follow the footsteps of champions by taking a Duck Tour.

#3 Chicago, IL

Insider tours of Wrigley Field are a great way to experience the sports culture of the Windy City. You can also chow down at a sports scene institution such as Michael Jordan’s Steak House, Harry Caray’s Italian Steakhouse, and Pequod’s Pizza.

#4 New Orleans, LA

Wild weekends, strong civic pride and some of the best live music in the US are the perfect recipe for wild New Orleans Saints fans. Be sure to visit Champions Square, just outside the Mercedes-Benz Superdome to sample the local culture.

#5 Denver, CO

In the Mile High City, residents don’t only love sports – they are also the most athletic in the nation. Denver also boasts the best micro brews, which you can enjoy on the patio at Lodo’s Bar & Grill while overlooking Coors Field.

Wherever your favorite team takes you, stay with Courtyard after the game.

Related Articles:
The Top 6 Destinations for 2012
The 10 Best Food Cities in America
The 10 Most Walkable Cities in the World

Part 2 of James Brown’s Responses to Fan Questions from Twitter

Happy Friday, everyone! As we head into the weekend, here are some more of football commentator James Brown’s responses to fan questions submitted via Twitter. JB is still responding to these questions every week, so be sure to visit our Twitter feed at www.twitter.com/courtyardhotels and submit yours.

Have a great weekend and thanks for helping us keep Courtyard on the go.

Courtyard Launches the Game Day Giveaway!

You might be wondering why we’ve been talking so much about football and James Brown lately. Well, we can finally reveal the reason – our Game Day giveaway! We know that many of our loyal Courtyard guests are fans of American football, and wanted to offer them a little something extra this fall.

Starting now, guests who book a weekend stay at a Courtyard in the U.S. or Canada using promotional code NF2 will receive a $25 gift card that can be used at NFLShop.com or at TicketsNow. This is a great way for fans to put a little extra money toward merchandise from their favorite team or purchase tickets to an upcoming NFL game or any other event. The stay must be booked by November 22, 2009, and completed by December 13, 2009.

On top of that, everyone who stays at a Courtyard in the U.S. or Canada by November 22, 2009, will be automatically entered to win a grand prize trip to meet football broadcaster James Brown on the set of his show in New York. Other prizes include a flat screen TV and Courtyard gift cards.

All of the details are on our site at www.courtyard.com/biggame, including a video post from J.B. himself. And every week, he’ll be checking in with us to offer his thoughts on the past weekend of football, what lies ahead in the coming week’s games and even answers questions from fans submitted via our Twitter feed. Be sure to submit your questions to @courtyardhotels and check back every week to see if J.B. answered yours!

Thanks for helping us keep Courtyard on the go.

CBS Football’s James Brown Answers Fan Twitter Questions at a Courtyard – Part 1

Here is the first segment of James Brown answering Twitter questions from fans at the Courtyard Fair Oaks. He enjoyed answering these questions so much that he wants his fans to keep sending them so he can respond to more! All you have to do is submit your question by leaving a comment on this blog post or via our Courtyard Hotels Twitter site. JB may answer your question in an upcoming segment!

Thanks for helping us keep Courtyard on the go.

Photos from James Brown’s Afternoon at the Courtyard Fair Oaks

We had a great afternoon with James Brown yesterday at our Courtyard Fair Oaks. He shot a few videos for us and even answered some fan questions from Twitter on film. All of the videos will be posted online starting in a few weeks so stay tuned for those. Until then, here are some pictures from yesterday’s shoot…enjoy!

Thanks for helping us keep Courtyard on the go.

Last Chance to Submit Questions for James Brown

It’s getting down to the wire! James Brown will be on site with us at one of our Courtyard hotels on Monday morning and will be answering football-related questions from fans. Send us yours to our CourtyardHotels Twitter site by Sunday night and he may answer it on camera!

Thanks for helping us keep Courtyard on the go!

CBS Football Broadcaster James Brown Spends Time with Courtyard and Answers Your Questions

Exciting news, football fans! On Monday, September 28, we’re lucky enough to get to spend some times with CBS football broadcaster James Brown. He’ll be with us at our Courtyard Fair Oaks in Fairfax, Virginia, to shoot a video that you’ll get to see in a few weeks.

While he’s there, he’s also going to tape answers to some of your most burning football-related questions like: “Will Brett Favre’s arm hold up through the season?” “Will Kurt Warner be able to pull off another big year in Arizona?” “What do you think of the AFL throwback jerseys?”

We’re looking for you to submit your questions to us either through a comment on this blog post or on our Twitter feed (www.twitter.com/courtyardhotels). We’ll select some of the top questions and post J.B.’s video response to them in segments online in the coming weeks.

Be sure to send us your questions by Friday, September 25 and stay tuned for the videos to see if J.B. answers yours!

Thanks for helping us keep Courtyard on the go.